Being that this is the first of the year and the beginning of this new blog, I figured I would start from a place of inspiration that I feel can be a guiding help for the year to come. We tend to talk about resolutions and such, but I think we have to make each day resolute as well. And I think that starts with empowering ourselves and getting beyond that which may be hindering us or causing us hesitation. Even in my unconventional relationship to the Bible, I have found that it does have much to offer us if we know how to read it for the beauty it can add to our lives in speaking to the human experience and God's interaction therein. Enjoy...
Jeremiah 20:7-9 = You deceived me, Lord, and I was deceived; you overpowered me and prevailed. I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me. Whenever I speak, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction. So the word of the Lord has brought me insult and reproach all day long. But if I say, “I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.
Jeremiah 20:7-9 = You deceived me, Lord, and I was deceived; you overpowered me and prevailed. I am ridiculed all day long; everyone mocks me. Whenever I speak, I cry out proclaiming violence and destruction. So the word of the Lord has brought me insult and reproach all day long. But if I say, “I will not mention his word or speak anymore in his name,” his word is in my heart like a fire, a fire shut up in my bones. I am weary of holding it in; indeed, I cannot.
Since I have come to understand
myself as a called individual, particularly as a person with some prophetic insight,
I have looked to this scripture time and again because it has some correlation
with my life and experience. I’m sure
that many people with any sense of calling can relate to the feeling of being
called/compelled to do something and then feeling like they’ve been tricked in
some way. ‘Maybe God was mistaken,’ we
think. ‘I feel like You set me up, God.’ We can find ourselves in places and led to do
things that make us question all of what we think we heard. It can get tough - people can respond to us in
less than positive ways, and we can feel beat up and persecuted or even just
frustrated by how things turn out. At the
point where we meet Jeremiah in this text, he has been beaten up and put in
stocks. Yet, after he is released, he
goes to the person who put him in the stocks and delivers a word that says that
he (Pashhur) will bring destruction to his friends and death to himself.
Common sense might tell you that
if someone just had you beaten and put into stocks that you would want to go far from that person once you were released. But for some strange reason, Jeremiah went back into the lion's den and said things that could get him a repeat of his previous punishment, if not worse. Why in the world would he do that? Well, as he complains to God, it's because he feels compelled by a passion that is akin to fire. Even though his physical life and health may be in jeopardy if he does what he feels led to do, the drive in him is so strong that it doesn't matter - he would rather risk it than to sit on this word he has been given. I am a writer, and there have been moments where words have piled up in my chest and in my head to the point that I couldn't think, breathe, and sit still until I have gotten those words onto paper and out of my being. Whatever your passion, you likely have had experiences like these where you felt it building or pushing on you or weighing so heavily on you that until you responded to the feeling, you couldn't find any sort of peace or rest.
But what about the risk? For me, taking the moment to get a piece of paper and write down what I'm thinking/feeling, there isn't much risk. Even if what I write is controversial, I don't necessarily have to do anything with it. The desire was to write it. Yet, after the writing, I'm likely gonna need to share it in some way, and depending on what it is, that could cause some consequences and repercussions. If it's a personal message, the person may not like/receive it. If it's something more universal, it may change people's opinion of me. There is always some level of risk in doing what God asks to do in a public place - ask Jesus, MLK, Martin Luther, and any other martyr or person who died for their cause. Even if your risk is stepping outside the box and having people think your idea is radical or going against the status quo, if you are going to do anything of substance, it will likely cause an issue or a ripple in the pond of some sort...
But that's okay. In fact, that can be the best thing for us. While Jeremiah experienced much persecution and frustration through his lifetime, he was also blessed to have an intimate with God. There was also some provision for him toward the end of his life to live in a palace and be treated well. Does everyone have a happy ending like that? No. But they find greater fulfillment in doing what their very being calls out for them to do? I would like to think so. I know that I find relief whenever I write what I feel led to, even if it's just for my own personal edification. And I am further affirmed in the fact that the Creator of the universe still has things to say to me from time to time, which is a good feeling, esp when I can get too caught up in my own life to be as attentive as I should be.
Take away: I think that while it can sometimes be hard to do whatever it is we are feeling led to do, and even though there may even be some risk involved, we should never miss an opportunity to live out and positively respond to our calling and/or passion. You don't have to be a minister or prophet to be called. And you don't have to be perfect to respond. Clearly Jeremiah cried and complained, but God can handle our concerns and complaints. God's not offended when you're honest about your feelings... but obedience is still the optimal response. So be empowered. The world didn't end on December 21 or at midnight, so there's more to be done. Find, feel, and follow your passion(s) and your call(s). Let that fire propel you into greater things for 2013 and beyond.
But what about the risk? For me, taking the moment to get a piece of paper and write down what I'm thinking/feeling, there isn't much risk. Even if what I write is controversial, I don't necessarily have to do anything with it. The desire was to write it. Yet, after the writing, I'm likely gonna need to share it in some way, and depending on what it is, that could cause some consequences and repercussions. If it's a personal message, the person may not like/receive it. If it's something more universal, it may change people's opinion of me. There is always some level of risk in doing what God asks to do in a public place - ask Jesus, MLK, Martin Luther, and any other martyr or person who died for their cause. Even if your risk is stepping outside the box and having people think your idea is radical or going against the status quo, if you are going to do anything of substance, it will likely cause an issue or a ripple in the pond of some sort...
But that's okay. In fact, that can be the best thing for us. While Jeremiah experienced much persecution and frustration through his lifetime, he was also blessed to have an intimate with God. There was also some provision for him toward the end of his life to live in a palace and be treated well. Does everyone have a happy ending like that? No. But they find greater fulfillment in doing what their very being calls out for them to do? I would like to think so. I know that I find relief whenever I write what I feel led to, even if it's just for my own personal edification. And I am further affirmed in the fact that the Creator of the universe still has things to say to me from time to time, which is a good feeling, esp when I can get too caught up in my own life to be as attentive as I should be.
Take away: I think that while it can sometimes be hard to do whatever it is we are feeling led to do, and even though there may even be some risk involved, we should never miss an opportunity to live out and positively respond to our calling and/or passion. You don't have to be a minister or prophet to be called. And you don't have to be perfect to respond. Clearly Jeremiah cried and complained, but God can handle our concerns and complaints. God's not offended when you're honest about your feelings... but obedience is still the optimal response. So be empowered. The world didn't end on December 21 or at midnight, so there's more to be done. Find, feel, and follow your passion(s) and your call(s). Let that fire propel you into greater things for 2013 and beyond.
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